Sprint to intro Galaxy S8 Active with half-off deal for switchers November 17

If you're coming to Sprint from another carrier, you can get a $425 discount off the newest and military-spec smartphone from Samsung.

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Kyocera DuraXV LTE is a rugged flip phone on Verizon… for $264

And that's because it is basically a basic Android-powered flip phone with all the specs needed in that device. There is no touchscreen, but it's durable.

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Outdoor Tech Rhinos: Rugged Headphones at CES 2017 (Video)

You wanna go outdoors? You wanna listen to some outdoor jams? Outdoor Tech may have your solution.

The Laguna Hills, California-based company has designed and manufactured a slate of tech products from power banks to Bluetooth speakers to this new Rhinos walkie-talkie/headset hybrid. It has a beastly battery and an IPX6 rating and it’s at CES 2017.

Juan Carlos Bagnell brings us a closer look.

 

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Mission start — Nixon’s first Android Wear ships October 10

It’s a chunky smartwatch with understated looks that’s built for action. And we’re finally seeing the ship date and price tag on it.Let’s re-introduce you to Nixon’s first Android Wear smartwatch, the Mission. It’s one of the first to come with Qualcomm’s wearable-dedicated Snapdragon 2100 chipset along with 10 ATM (100m) water resistance. The 400 x 400 circular AMOLED ...

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Kyocera Hydro Life unboxing: a durable phone for your durable life (video)

You live an active life and your phone should be able to keep up! Many phones have to be hidden away and protected in the rain, at the pool or beach, or any other place they may get wet. While most phones will likely survive a quick splash, dropping your phone in the tub or sink, or trying to use it in the blowing rain will usually end in disaster. Some phones are starting to bring basic water resistance to their spec sheets, and are helping us to free up our lives and enjoy them like we were meant to do – after all, people are already water resistant.Such is goal of the

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Samsung Galaxy S5 Active review: sturdy, but not “everything-proof”

We’ve said it before: durable smartphones shouldn’t have to be crappy ones. After all, these things are supposed to be “life companions.” You want a device that can keep up with you no matter how muddy, wet, or bumpy your slog through life becomes – and you shouldn’t have to sacrifice specs for that level of durability.Samsung gave us a taste of that best-of-both-worlds experience with last ...

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Here’s what “water resistant” and “water proof” really mean

“Water proof” and “water resistant” mean the same thing, right? Apparently that’s what Archos CEO Loic Poirier thought — he was wrong. Poirier was happily showing off his new phone — a Quechua — which is advertised to French hikers and mountain bikers. He tossed it on the floor. No problem! Then, with cameras rolling, he found a glass jar, dropped the phone in, and started to fill it up with water. The phone is rated at IP54 and advertised as being ...

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Bring on the salt water smartphones

Confession time: I’ve destroyed a review unit or two in my day. I lost a brand-new LG flagship in the back of a cab once. During a durability test late last year, I did enough damage to an LG G Flex that we ended up having to buy the thing from Negri Electronics. And just a couple weeks back, you all saw me

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Empty Nest: what I miss (and don’t) about the Galaxy S 4 Active

I’ve learned that there are two things about being a smartphone-and-tablet reviewer. The first thing: you get to handle awesome gadgetry days or weeks ahead of its official release date, and you’re not just allowed to use the heck out of it; you need to, in order to do your job. That’s the awesome thing. The other, less-awesome thing: you eventually have to give it all back. Empty Nest is a recurring column discussing what I miss -and what I don’t- about the devices I’ve had to return. • I was chest-deep in ...

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Hands-on with the rugged NEC Terrain (Video)

Not long ago we unboxed and showed off the hardware of the NEC Terrain for AT&T. But you weren’t content with just that, you wanted to see us abuse it. Some people might call me “soft”. I have a desk-job. I drive a Prius. Other than the goatee, on the outside I’m not what most people would call “rugged”. While that may be what most people see, I also build stuff. I get my hands dirty. While I won’t claim to be as rugged as others who do really hard work every day, I can certainly ...

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NEC Terrain unboxing: The world’s most solid smartphone (video)

NEC doesn’t have a substantial presence in the Android market today. However, with its new device, the NEC Terrain, NEC makes a bold statement, billing the rugged device as “the World’s most SOLID smartphone”. The Terrain is rated IP-67 for dust and water immersion; and Military 810G for shock, extreme temperatures, and salt fog; yet it still manages to cram a push-to-talk button and QWERTY keyboard inside its rugged shell. As far as specifications are concerned, the first thing you’ll want to note is that it comes with a somewhat dated version of Android: Ice ...

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